Turkey arrests 11 commandos for attempt to capture Erdogan during failed coup

Turkey’s special forces have arrested 11 fugitive commandos wanted for involvement in an alleged attempt to capture President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the July 15 failed coup in the country.

Gendarmerie special forces, backed by helicopters and drones, raided the hideout of the commandos in the Ula district in the province of Mugla, state-run Anadolu Agency said Monday.

The raid was launched on a tip-off from a local.

The detainees were part of a group of 37 soldiers who were reportedly involved in an attempt to capture Erdogan while he was holidaying in the resort town of Marmaris on the night of July 15. Anadolu further said 25 of the troops had been detained earlier.

Erdogan had managed to flee the hotel by the time the soldiers arrived as he had been notified of potential danger.

The development came a day after Turkey sacked nearly 1,400 military personnel suspected of having links with US-based opposition cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara blames for the botched coup.

The dismissals were the latest in a series of purges related to the coup attempt.

So far, over 60,000 people in the Turkish military, judiciary, civil services and schools have been detained, dismissed or suspended over suspected Gulen links.

At least 246 people were killed and more than 2,100 others sustained injuries when an army faction, using hijacked helicopters and tanks, clashed with government troops and people on the streets of the capital, Ankara, and the city of Istanbul during the July 15 coup.

Shortly after the coup bid was declared over on July 16, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Gulen of being behind the coup attempt. The US-based cleric, however, has denied any role in the foiled putsch.

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